Before having kids I could never have imagined that I’d be writing a blog post about my favorite ‘nursing essentials.’ All you need is a set of boobs, right? Oh, if only it were that simple…
my top five nursing essentials
1. Boppy Pillow. It’s funny… I’ve seen articles where people list the Boppy pillow as one of the baby items they didn’t need and I want to yell WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT???!!! This thing has been a staple in my life for over two years now. It started as a breastfeeding positioner, a comfy propping pillow for a newborn, then a tummy time assistant, a stabilizer for a wobbly sitter, and I even used it every night while feeding my toddler a bedtime bottle. It was used daily for over 18 months [then repeated with baby #2!] and I can’t say that about any other baby items. I’ve contemplated buying one for each floor of our house. I’ve also brought this along for cross country flights when space is PRECIOUS, so it’s very possible I’m just a little too attached to this pillow.
2. Bamboobies. You wouldn’t think it, but a great cloth nursing pad is difficult to find. For the early weeks when cloth isn’t absorbent enough, I use these disposables because they’re the best… trust me… other brands don’t compare. But once everything stabilized with my milk supply, I love my Bamboobies! They’re comfortable, don’t leak very often and aren’t visible under my clothing. So basically everything you require in a nursing pad. I only wish I would have discovered Bamboobies sooner!
3. Nursing Cover Up. If you fall in the ‘I’m ok with nursing in public, but I’d prefer no one sees my tatas‘ camp… like me… then you should definitely invest in a nursing cover up. I spent too long telling myself my favorite muslin blankets were enough and that a cover up was a waste of money. But, once I broke down and got myself a ‘hooter hider’, nursing on-the-go became much easier. It has a little wire portion around the neck that holds the apron away from your face so you can easily peer down at the baby while nursing. I’ve found both of my children have been ok nursing under this apron, but have protested under a regular blanket. For whatever that’s worth.
4. Nursing Bra. Oh, nursing bras. I pretty much loathe thee. But this is the best one I’ve found and now the only one I use. It wins by a landslide on the comfort scale, except it lacks a little in support. I look forward to the day I can return to the land of normal bras, but until then at least I can wear this one comfortably day AND night.
5. Hands-free Pumping Bra. If you pump, you need this bra. Period. When I went back to work after having Colin, I spent so much time attached to my pump. Being hands-free during this time was critical. It made me feel less like a dairy cow and more like a human being. And now that I have two kids, this bra allows me to play duplos with my toddler while pumping milk for my baby [isn’t that a sight to see?!]
Well, those are the items at the top of my list… what is your must-have breastfeeding item?
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